10 September 2006

(Guardian) The future of all unlicensed forms of internet gambling - from poker to horse racing bets - in at least seven US states was under threat after it emerged that the arrest of Peter Dicks, Sportingbet's British chairman, at New York's JFK airport was linked to Louisiana state's wide-ranging laws against gambling by computer. Most legal experts had, until yesterday, seen the federal Wire Act 1961 as the main threat to internet gaming operators targeting US customers. But several states, including Louisiana, have more up-to-date laws, more suited to the internet age.